Office for Reparations denies compensating any MP for destroyed houses

The Office for Reparations has not paid any compensation for the MPs whose houses were set on fire during the unrest in 2022.

This clarification comes in response to claims by several former MPs that they had received compensation from the Office for Reparations for damages caused to their houses during the 2022 violence.

According to informed sources, the Office for Reparations does not provide compensation to the Members of Parliament (MPs). However, it does compensate members of the public whose property has been damaged or lost due to civil unrest.

As such, to date, the Office for Reparations has paid approximately Rs. 1.13 billion in compensation to citizens affected by the civil disturbances and political violence of 2022. This includes 301 cases related to immovable property and 76 cases related to movable property.

In 2024 alone, a sum of over Rs 300 million has been paid in compensation to affected members of the public.

Sources further revealed that paying of compensations pertaining to the unrest in 2022 is still ongoing, reiterating that the Office for Reparations has not paid compensations to any MP for the damage or loss of their property during the civil unrest.

According to the Office for Reparations, documents such as an Original or Certified copy of the complaint lodged with the Police, or a report obtained from the Police stating that the property was destroyed/damaged due to the civil unrest are required to be submitted to be eligible for receiving the compensation for loss or damage to property due to civil unrest.

Established under the 2018 Act, the Office for Reparations in Sri Lanka is responsible for providing redress in the form of financial compensation, psychosocial support, and other measures to alleviate suffering while recognizing past injustices.

This topic has been in the spotlight after Minister Nalinda Jayatissa in Parliament alleged that some 43 former MPs have received Rs. 1.2 billion in compensation for the damages caused to their houses during the Aragalaya (uprising) in 2022.

Meanwhile, it is reported that the MPs had received compensation from the then Ministry of Urban Development and Housing. However, a proper source through which the compensation was provided is yet to be announced by the government.